Sixteen-year-old Mujahedeh was murdered by her own father ostensibly to redeem her family's "honor."Her offense? Her family had accused her of bringing shame upon them by escaping a home in which she was subjected to daily beatings."She had enough," says Homa, a deputy director of a women's rights group called the Center for the Growth of the Talents of Afghan Women who got to know Mujahedeh. "She escaped home and went to the Ministry of Women's Affairs. Then she spent some time in a ministry shelter. She liked to go to school and was busy studying. She was enjoying [better] conditions and she didn't want to return to her family, but her mother insisted they'd let her go to school -- her mother said, 'Your father has forgiven your sin.' And she was finally forced to return to her relatives Later it was heard from a neighbor or someone else that her father had murdered her when she returned."
Human Rights Watch defines "honor killings" as 'Honor killings are acts of vengeance, usually death, committed by male family members against female family members, who are held to have brought dishonor upon the family. A woman can be targeted by (individuals within) her family for a variety of reasons, including: refusing to enter into an arranged marriage , being the victim of a sexual assault, seeking a divorce—even from an abusive husband—or (allegedly) committing adultery. The mere perception that a woman has behaved in a way that "dishonors" her family is sufficient to trigger an attack on her life'. Although we do see some cases where the men are also killed along with the women but that's a very small number relatively.So in general these killings target the innocent women.
Amidst a lot of research on finding the root causes of this evil, the social scientists have narrowed down their approach focusing on the greatest contributor.Patriarchy.This phenomenon of male dominance in the family goes way back to the times of inception of kinship and family structures.The oldest male member is seen as the head of the family and the protector of family's pride and honor. His is the supreme authority and his discretion is the final verdict.That was the era of male domination where women were just seen as subjects.Rather an instrument of man's lust.
And today, after a long drawn struggle by the women force, they have successfully broken the four walls of those abusive homes and made a foray into the mainstream proving there capabilities in all sectors and getting accolades for the discipline and innovation they have inculcated in the system.Her success frustrates the clans of orthodox men who still see patriarchy as a moral arrangement.They do not want to see her walking shoulder to shoulder. They are scared to be left behind by women.They want there place back.They want her back beneath their shoes.And 'honor killings' is the tool they have found.In the name of redeeming the family 'honor', they slaughter their own daughters,sisters and mothers so ruthlessly that even the Satan would not want a glance.And the most disgusting is the fact that these brutal and evil actions are seen as understandable and excusable by some people.It's a shame on the part of the educated masses who indulge and also on the part of the government who is not able to curb this ugly mean of vengeance.
The need of the hour is to stop the glorification of these killing, to take stringent actions against the culprits and to promote the NGOs and institutions which are working to help the victims in regaining normalcy. And those men with patriarchal hangover, need to be told that men are physically stronger to protect women.And not to profess.
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